Thread: Childminding idea

Just wanted to run an idea by you lovely people. My little dude is 6 months old now and i'm bored and more to the point a bit skint. So my little brain has been working away to think of something i can do with my own kids in tow that will make a bit of extra money. Now the obviously answer is childcare. Problem is i don't want to be a full time childminder. So heres the idea.

It would be a baby sitting service offered only to military families. I will get myself CRB checked and ofsted registered for the parents peace of mind but only charge similar rates to a teenager babysitter if not less, something in the regiion of £30 for a full evening or £5 an hour.
My thinking is that if someone is required to attend say a dining in night but doesnt have a sitter i would be 1st port of call to make life that little bit easier (especially for parents of younger kids who may not want to leave them with a 16 yr old) Also considering offering an afternoon service for those with partners on tour or whatever so they can go shoppnig for an hour or so without kids in tow.
I don't want to have kids 'on my books' so to speak just be a sortof phone me up in the morning if i'm not booked or busy i'll take your child on.

What do you think? Is this something you would consider using for your child or am i barking up the wrong tree and need to head back to the drawing board?

Sounds like a good idea to me - if it works then you could even expand it so other like-minded mums could do it too with you as the central port of call!

Absolutely inspired. My girls are grown now but I'd have loved that option when they were younger. We have someone who offers a similar service for dogs. She'll come round at short notice and let the dogs out, play and feed for £15.00. She has more clients than she knows what to do with.

Tree - my sprout has long flown the nest but am loving the idea - 'specially the afternoon touch. Good idea to get CRB checked - most folks expect it nowdays.

Heli - have just found my retirement job thanks to you :lol:

Love that idea, and can you move near me please!! I could really do with something like that, actually more for day times than evenings. Far too many times I've had hospital appointments and had to drag her along as I had no one to watch her, and would have quite happily paid someone like yourself to have her for me.

excellent idea lady!!!

Brilliant idea, I would've have loved something like that when my hubby was on tour, it was a nightmare trying to do food shopping with 2 kids in tow (and being in Germany I couldn't rely on tesco delivery!!)
Go for it, I would feel much happier leaving my kids with a mum rather than a teenager. We've got a babysitting circle here, haven't had a chance to use it but definately will at some point

I take my hat of to you as quite frankly the thought of working with children makes me shudder! I just could not do it :lol: :lol: Seriously, it is a fab idea - good for you.

xx

Hi! Been lurking but thought I would de-lurk to reply to this as I've been considering doing a similar thing if (when?) my OH gets through training. Would you be dealing with the 5+ age group, or do you have EYPS? I don't have that, you see, and was planning on working with the slightly older kids. Just curious.

I think you've got a really great idea. I also think that the high amount of regulation around childminding here is a little scary (I'm from the US originally). Growing up, everyone in our little community who could just took turns doing exactly what you're proposing ('oh, hi Jean, need to run to the shops, is it your week this week? cheers, be back in an hour'). That would just go over like a lead balloon here, and to be fair, increasingly more so back home as well. :lol:

Edit: Of course on re-reading your post, there's no need for you to have EYPS anyway, is there? Silly meeee.

The red tape is difficult to work through As yet I don't have my qualifications. I am going to get my welfare service to have a sniff around and help me do some market research on what people would actually like and if it is a viable business proposition before i invest any hard earned cash into it. My posting is a bit different to regular ones in that it can be a 22 yr posting for some of the trades here (my hubbys included) so the idea may not be qute as useful in an area where everyone pretty much knows everyone anyway but we can but try.
my intention is to get myself crb check regardless. i know i cannot look after any child who is not a blood relative for longe than 2 hours without breaking the law so my next step is to find out if qualifying as a nanny (which is a less comprehensive course) covers me for looknig after children in my own home or not. If not I'll be doing my full childcare qualification and being ofsted registered.
I'll speak to the powers that be on Monday morning and see exactly where i stand legally and what i need to have.
At the moment I am still in the market research stage as I want to make sure this is a financially viable option for me

If you can get past the red tape I think it definitely would be a good thing financially. As OH isn't in yet, not sure what the childcare situation is on posts around here, but I grew up in a Navy town and good affordable childcare was scarce as hen's teeth. I mean, you have a group of folks who are essentially single parents for a good chunk of the year, and some of them like to work, gosh darn it. And apparently it's frowned upon to just let your children roam wild in the streets these days? :lol:

I used to run a nanny agency ( :twisted: fantastic idea but quite frankly it was a frigging nightmare). So, having thought about your idea, I wanted to give you the following pointers and stuff to consider.

Have a look at NVQ2 childcare as childminding might suit you short -term but a NVQ2 childcare really does lead to a lot of other things kiddie-related. For example, it is a great leg-up if you are thinking of perhaps trying for School Teacher Assistant as your little one grows up and starts school. You may be able to study for this from home, but I am not 100% sure. So realistically, a little bit of studying now whilst your little one is tiny could really pay off in five years time career-wise.

Childminders have to be much more professional and early-years orientated as they have and will get struck off by OFSTED. There is quite a bit of reporting paperwork that has to be completed on each child every day. Years ago a childminder could get away with a endless stream of biscuits, juice and DVDs, but those days really are long gone.

Paediatric first aid qualifications are a must, and check the website for Morton Michel for the price of indemnity cover for childminders.

hp
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